Welcome to the inaugural edition of Sustainable Facility’s annual LEED Guide issue. Produced in conjunction with sister publication, Environmental Design + Construction (ED+C), the LEED Guide focus in this annual edition addresses various areas impacted by the U.S. Green Building Council’s (USGBC) Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Green Building Rating System, including schools, USGBC chapters, ROI and costs, as well as facilities, existing buildings and other sustainable strategies.
The LEED Guide Let me start by assuring you that I do not work for the USGBC, nor am I trying to “sell you” on its LEED Rating System. I am including some information that you, as a facility manager (FM) and/or building owner or energy manager, will hopefully find useful, and possibly even applicable to the building portfolio you are responsible for maintaining.
The USGBC laid a solid foundation in the field of sustainable design nearly a decade ago when it introduced the LEED Green Building Rating System to the world. Striving to make environmentally friendly design more commonplace and accepted within the building community, the council embarked on a journey that picks up new riders on a daily basis. Several years after ED+C magazine was launched, the publication’s staunch support of LEED led to the inaugural issue of what is now the magazine’s eighth annual LEED Guide.
The LEED Green Building Rating System encourages and accelerates global adoption of sustainable green building and development practices through the creation and implementation of universally understood and accepted tools and performance criteria. Whether you’re well versed in the nuances of the LEED system, or are just now becoming acquainted with the proverbial alphabet soup that is the acronym-heavy modus operandi of the platform, hopefully you agree that there is always room to improve the performance and condition of the existing building sector.
To be considered for LEED, a building must meet specific prerequisites and additional credit areas within six categories:
- Sustainable Sites
- Water Efficiency
- Energy and Atmosphere
- Materials and Resources
- Indoor Environmental Quality
- Innovation and Design
And in addition to the LEED-NC and LEED for Existing Buildings: O&M platforms, there are avenues for Commercial Interiors (CI), Core & Shell (CS), Schools, Retail, Healthcare, Homes and Neighborhood Development.
LEED Professional AccreditationLEED Professional Accreditation distinguishes building professionals with the knowledge and skills to successfully steward the LEED certification process. According to the USGBC, LEED Accredited Professionals (LEED APs) have demonstrated a thorough understanding of green building practices and principles and the LEED Rating System. More than 43,000 people have earned the credential since the Professional Accreditation program was launched in 2001.
And, in 2008, administration of the Professional Accreditation program transitioned to the Green Building Certification Institute (GBCI). The GBCI, established with the support of the USGBC, now handles exam development and delivery.
More information on the LEED Rating System is available online at
www.usgbc.org/leed.
Please be sure to let Sustainable Facility know about your experiences with LEED project management. I’m curious as to individual reaction to the LEED-EB platform, specifically, as well as any feedback regarding the rating system and how it has impacted your building portfolio. Email me at
maytonj@bnpmedia.
Thanks for reading.
Until next time,
Joseph H. Mayton III
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